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Elderly Man Evicted from His Land for Living off the Grid
By Rady Ananda
CLASS WAR FILES: On Nov. 30, the Madison County (Indiana) Planning Commission evicted a 72-year-old man from his 38 acres, reported Wish TV. County Prosecutor Thomas Broderick says the Alexandria resident, Richard L. Thompson, broke all kinds of laws -- no electricity, no septic system, no running water, and (lions and tigers and bears!) he lived in a camper on land he bought from his parents.
In what is clearly a land grab, since not much tax can be assessed on unimproved land, the authorities promised to come on November 30th, but did not show. However, that day Mr. Thompson agreed to sell his land and move. "I want to get the hell out of here now. There's too much hate here."
NGO Monitor Targets Truth for Israel
by Stephen Lendman
Its web site (ngo-monitor.org) says it "was founded to promote accountability, and advance a vigorous discussion on the reports and activities of NGOs claiming to promote moral agendas, such as humanitarian aid and human rights."
In fact, it's a Jerusalem-based pro-Israeli front group, disseminating propaganda and hate, debasing legitimate human rights organizations, independent journalism, and other advocates for truth, equity and justice.
Its director, Gerald Steinberg, is a Bar Ilan University political science professor, a fellow of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, a steering committee member of the Forum on Antisemitism at the Office of the (Israeli) Prime Minister, and various other organizations promoting a pro-Israeli agenda.
Latin America’s Twenty First Century Capitalism and the US Empire
James Petras
Political Power and the World Market
The twin nemesis of Latin America’s quest for more equitable and dynamic development, US imperial and local oligarchic power have been subject to profound changes over the past decade. New capitalist classes both at home and abroad have redefined Latin America’s relation to world markets, seized opportunities to stimulate growth and forged cross class coalitions linking overseas investors, agro-mineral exporters, national industrialists with a broad array of trade unions, and in some countries peasant and Indian social movements. Parallel to these changes in Latin America, a new militarist and financial political configuration engaged in prolonged wars, colonial occupations and widespread speculation has weakened the structural economic links – dominance – between US imperial economic interests and Latin America’s dynamic socio-economic classes.
Where to go from Wikileaks? The Peace Movement Responds
Cindy Sheehan
Oakland, Ca: While only a tiny fraction of the U.S. diplomatic cables scheduled for publication by Wikileaks have thus far been made available, some conclusions can already be drawn. These cables and the Iraq and Afghan War Diaries provide an opportunity for Americans to see our government for what it is.
Our government is seen here as controlling a global military and espionage empire that impacts every region of the globe and deceives its own population. Secrecy, spying, and hostility have infected our entire government, turning the diplomatic corps into an arm of the CIA and the military, just as the civilian efforts in Afghanistan are described by Richard Holbrooke, who heads them up, as "support for the military." Secret war planning, secret wars, and lies about wars have become routine. The United States is secretly and illegally engaged in a war in Yemen and has persuaded that nation's government to lie about it. The United States has supported a coup in Honduras and lied about it.
Tell Alan Simpson To Just Shut Up
by Mary Pitt
When Alan Simpson left the Senate in 1997 to retire to his ranch on a cushy Federal pension, many Americans breathed a sigh of relief that we would no longer be exposed to his thoughtless rants of disregard for "we, the people". Alas, we are again blasted with his sneering references to the poor and the old as sucking at the "cow" with 310 million "teats", ( a word to which he gives the archaic pronunciaton.) He hides behind the excuse that he is a "country boy" who is accustomed to "straight talk." Well, I'm an old country girl who is quite familiar with that same straight talk and ready to give the world the "straight skinny."
This old fool would have the American public believe that he, due to his years of Senate seniority, has more wisdom than we. This is not true! A look at his biography will demonstrate that, rather than having pulled himself up by his bootstraps, he has always been a child of privilege and that privilege has come from that same old "cow" whose "milk" he does not want to share. His father was a United States Senator before him and every opportunity that he has enjoyed in his life has resulted from his daddy's position.
The Burning Bush
Gilad Atzmon
Disaster in the North of Israel, at least 40 dead as fire rages across the Carmel Mountains. A mass evacuation has begun.
As I am writing these lines, Israeli Fire fighting crews are battling with the flames. They also express no hope of controlling the fire soon. "We lost all control of the fire," said the Haifa Fire fighting services spokesman. "There aren't enough fire fighting resources in Israel in order to put out the fire."
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hurried to the scene of the fire on Thursday. He requested the help of the U.S, Greece, Italy, Russia, and Cyprus to send additional forces to aid the Israeli firemen. A normal country would probably ask for the help of its neighbours, but the Jewish state doesn’t have neighbours. It made all its neighbours into enemies.
"Unconstitutional" food bill driven by Big Food lobby dollars
By Rady Ananda
While over 200 organizations lobbied on S.510, the Food Safety Modernization Act, no one seemed to notice an unconstitutional section in the bill until after it passed on Tuesday. That day, Roll Call advised that the bill contained a provision, Sec. 107, allowing the Senate to raise revenues. This violates Article I, Section 7, of the U.S. Constitution, granting that power exclusively to the House. S.510 opponents now celebrate the House's use of the “blue slip process” to return the bill to the Senate.
The Alliance for Natural Health figures that: “The only possible ‘quick fix’ would be a unanimous consent agreement in the Senate to strike that revenue-raising provision from the bill—but Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) has already stated that he will oppose, so unanimity will be impossible.” ANH believes it is unlikely that the Senate will return to a debate on S.510, given its full agenda. Its only other option is to “allow the bill to die at the end of this Congress [which means] a new Food Safety Bill will be introduced next year.”
No Room at the Inn - Not even a TARP
What do you get when you cross Tim Geithner and Peter Peterson?
Barack Obama; who would rather help the big banks and balance the budget than offer a helping hand for struggling homeowners. (Image)
The president demonstrated new heights of indifference toward the people in his handling of the mortgage relief program made a part of the Trouble Asset Relief Program (TARP). Citizens paid the full share for TARP and were to get a modest proportion. That's not the case. The November 2010 Congressional Budget Office Report on TARP was just issued. It showed that the funds for home mortgage assistance programs would be reduced from $50 billion to $12 billion, as reported in the Huffington Post.
Reading the details of the report, we find that the take back from homeowner relief through TARP funds is even more outrageous. The actual funds spent so far for homeowner relief is only $710 million.
The United States has long supported brutal regimes around the world: Prof. Robert Jensen
Interview by Kourosh Ziabari
Robert Jensen is a journalism professor at the University of Texas at Austin and board member of the Third Coast Activist Resource Center in Austin.
Jensen joined the UT faculty in 1992 after completing his Ph.D. in media ethics and law in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota. Prior to his academic career, he worked as a professional journalist for a decade. At UT, Jensen teaches courses in media law, ethics, and politics.
In his research, Jensen draws on a variety of critical approaches to media and power. Much of his work has focused on pornography and the radical feminist critique of sexuality and men’s violence, and he also has addressed questions of race through a critique of white privilege and institutionalized racism.
DEATH OF THE DOLLAR
Allen L Roland
The handwriting is on the wall and yet no one, from capitol hill to Wall Street, apparently wants to talk about it. The dollar’s demise, however, is obvious to the informed and knowledgeable ~ for its death is eventually inevitable.
First some history ~ The dollar became the world's reserve currency when President Nixon abandoned the gold standard in the 1970's. The dollar is used for 43% of all cross-border transactions, and 63% of the world's central bank foreign currency reserves are in dollars. The next most popular currency? The euro, which comprises only 30% of reserves. Although it is increasing rapidly, it is still less than half the amount held in dollars.
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